The Associated Press published a story on Thursday, titled “Rep. Steve Stockman MIA?,” reporting that the Texas Republican had missed 17 straight House votes since Jan. 9.

Mr. Stockman told Breitbart News that he went on an official trip with four other members of Congress.

“I missed votes because I don’t have a zillion dollars like [Sen. John] Cornyn and have [to] campaign,” he told Breitbart News. “But I wasn’t missing. The Dallas Morning News covered my talk and Cornyn’s tracker was there. Both the press and Cornyn knew where I was.

“Reporters knew I was on an official State Department trip but refused to admit the truth because it would have spoiled their bizarre stories,” he said.

Mr. Stockman also took to Twitter to express his disapproval for American media.

“I must have found the one place the American media won’t go — a pro-Israel press conference,” he said. “You must be conservative when you’re meeting with the media and the media claim they can’t find you.”

“The Egyptian media were stunned and angry at how anti-U.S. the American press are,” he said.